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There's good news for those who suffer from nerve damage: a New York
scientist has successfully piloted a treatment called cryoneurolysis to
significantly reduce chronic pain by inserting tiny, icy nodules into
affected areas, freezing the outer layers of nerves to relieve pain for
up to two months.

Neuralgia
occurs when nerves constantly react as though a stimulus were present,
such as pressure, when there really isn't anything there. People who
recover from shingles, for example, sometimes experience nerve pain well after they recover from the sickness itself.

How Cryoneurolysis Kills Pain

A
tiny probe the size of an IV needle is inserted into the skin in the
painful area. Blood is drawn and tiny crystals measuring 10 to -16
degrees are slowly released, effectively freezer-burning the outer layer
of the damaged nerves and reducing pain from about an eight out of 10
to 2.4 out of 10.

The damaged nerves do grow back, and some
amount of pain returns, so patients must receive multiple treatments to
keep the pain at bay.

"We are continuing the study with a total
goal of 125 patients," Moore tells Healthline. His initial study was
small, but the results are encouraging.

Hope for Chronic Pain Sufferers

It's
important to note that Moore's research is in the early stages, and
that his treatment may only work on certain types of nerve damage,
specifically damage resulting from injury, diabetes, or surgery.

"This
research only focuses on nerve-related pain," Moore said. "The
mechanism for other injuries is complex and might not be applicable to
this research."

As for undergoing cryoneurolosis treatment, Moore offers the following advice:

"In
order to have success in controlling the patient's pain, this procedure
requires an excellent working relationship with the patient, the pain
management expert, and the interventional radiologist."